Citation guidelines

Citing involves indicating the source of the material used in the preparation of the work. Omitting this information is considered plagiarism. RMI reviews all papers using the Turnitin tool to detect plagiarism, and in the event of finding it, the work is rejected.

Plagiarism is often unintentional: the source is cited but what was cited is not identified in the text, or the reference is omitted. Therefore, it is recommended to follow these guidelines:

  • The Mesoamerican Journal of Research (RMI) accepts works with citations and references according to the 7th edition of the APA (American Psychological Association) standards. 
  • All citations in the text must have a corresponding reference, and vice versa.
  • In references, do not include sources that were consulted but not cited.

The author must correctly apply and accurately indicate the two main categories of citations: direct quotations and paraphrases.

Direct Quotations

These are citations in which the copied text from a source is used exactly as it is. If the quoted passage is less than 40 words, it is placed in quotation marks within the paragraph:

Example 1

According to Martínez (2020), "teeth are originated during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm," hence they can be considered unique structures in the digestive system.

If the quoted text is from an article, it is not necessary to include the page in the citation. However, if it comes from a book, the specific page where the passage is located must be indicated:

Example 2

According to Martínez (2020), "teeth are originated during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm" (p. 236), hence they can be considered unique structures in the digestive system.

Use the elements described above in variations of this type of citation, for example:

  • In 2020, Martínez stated that "teeth are originated during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm." (p. 236), hence they can be considered unique structures in the digestive system. (In this form, place the period before the parenthesis.)
  • It is recognized that "teeth are originated during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm" (Martínez, 2020, p. 236), hence they can be considered unique structures in the digestive system. (In this form, do not use a period before the parenthesis.)

Avoid:

  1. Writing the work with copied text from the author without giving credit by omitting the quotation marks that indicate it is a direct quotation.
  • Example (based on the correct form of examples 1 and 2: Teeth are originated during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm, which is why they can be considered unique pieces in the digestive system.
  1. Writing the work with copied text from the author without quotation marks that indicate it is a direct quotation, even when the citation (author and publication year) is included.
  • If quotation marks are omitted in several citations throughout the work, Turnitin will sum up the total percentage of plagiarism.
  • The RMI does not accept any level of plagiarism, so it is recommended to meticulously follow the citation format.
  • Example (based on the correct form of examples 1 and 2: Teeth are originated during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm (Martínez, 2020).

In both cases, Turnitin will indicate a percentage of plagiarism

  1. Changing or substituting words in direct quotations, resulting in the omission of quotation marks described in point 2. As indicated in the APA standards, to omit words, maintain the quotation marks that indicate it is a direct quotation and use ellipsis points to mark the omissions. To change words, use brackets to mark the changes made. Do not put a space between the ellipsis points and the parenthesis containing them:
  • Example to omit one or more words from a direct quotation (based on the original form of example 1: "Teeth are originated (...) from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm" (Martínez, 2020).
  • Example to substitute one or more words in a direct quotation (based on the original form of example 2: "Teeth [form] during gestation from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm" (Martínez, 2020, p. 236).
  • Example to omit and simultaneously substitute one or more words: "Teeth are originated (...) from the endoderm [and, concurrently, the] mesoderm and ectoderm" (Martínez, 2020, p. 236).

When the direct quotation exceeds 40 words

In this case, the copied passage from the original source should be presented in a separate paragraph, indented half an inch, without quotation marks or italics.

Example 3

          Follow the guidelines outlined in points 1, 2, and 3 for citations of fewer than 40 words, replacing quotation marks with an indentation. Do not use both.

  • When omitting either the indentation or the citation (author, year) in a quotation of more than 40 words, Turnitin will result in a high percentage of plagiarism, leading to the imminent rejection of the work.
  • RMI accepts a maximum of two quotations exceeding 40 words in a single work.
  • Texts with textual citations exceeding 10% of the content of the work are not accepted. The main goal is for the work to consist mainly of original content and the author's analysis, with citations used to support and enrich the argument.

Paraphrased Citations

In a paraphrased citation, the ideas presented in the original source are used to support an argument that the author of the work presents in their own words.

Example 4 (based on the original text presented in examples 1 and 3):

Teeth are more complex than they seem, as they have a highly specialized formation process (Martínez, 2020). Despite their differences in size and shape, they share a common functional characteristic.

  • In this case, all the text is of the author's own creation, so Turnitin will not detect plagiarism. 
  • A paraphrased citation should never be placed in quotation marks or presented with a margin in a separate paragraph.
  •  A paraphrased citation is not a textual citation with some omitted or modified words. If a paraphrase is made by omitting or changing words from a textual citation, due to the lack of quotation marks or margin in a separate paragraph, Turnitin will count it as plagiarized text.

Avoid:

  1. Making claims in the work lacking support.
    • Example (based on the paraphrase presented in example 4): Teeth are more complex than they seem, as they have a highly specialized formation process. Despite their differences in size and shape, they share a common functional characteristic.
    • In this case, the text would contain a weak assertion (that the formation process is special) as there is no source to support or sustain what is said. Citations are necessary to support arguments that are not common knowledge.
  2. Using citations to support claims that are common knowledge. 
    • Example: Despite their differences in size and shape, teeth, according to Martínez (2020), are elements that are part of every human body.
    • In this case, it is common knowledge that all humans have teeth, so it is not necessary to support the argument with a citation. 
  3. Both the use of the same quotation more than twice in the same paragraph and the consecutive use of the same quotation
    • Example: It is acknowledged that "teeth originate during gestation" (Martínez, 2020, p. 236). It is also acknowledged that they originate "from the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm" (Martínez, 2020, p. 236).

During Stage 1 (editorial evaluation) of the evaluation process, all submissions will be reviewed by the editorial team of RMI to verify that the text complies with the anti-plagiarism policy criteria and the extension, format, structure, and content in accordance with the guidelines of RMI outlined in this section.

Due to the digital nature of RMI, the work must include:

  • In the references section, the DOI or URL of each source.
  • Books of general access in a university library in the case of books that are not in digital format. For example: "Theory of Communicative Action" by Jürgen Habermas; "Differences, Disconnected, and Unequal" by Néstor García Canclini; "Research Methodology" by Roberto Hernández Sampieri; "Design and Analysis of Experiments" by Douglas Montgomery.
  • Only degree theses that are in an institutional repository and accessible to the general public. The DOI or URL must be provided.
  • Link to any storage medium (drive, dropbox, etc.) where the author makes available to readers, in digitized form, the fragment containing the material used in the case of using sources that are not of general access in any university library or archival documents (municipal, state, national, or international) without DOI or URL. Make sure that permission is not restricted, and the file is accessible to any user with the URL.

To ensure the scientific quality of the journal, RMI does not accept:

  • More than 30% of sources over 5 years old
  • Sources from:
    • Papers presented at conferences
    • Blogs
    • Websites with *.com domains

References

References should be placed at the end of the document following the guidelines of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA). A guide can be consulted at https://normas-apa.org/ Do not include references in footnotes.

Journal Article

Author's Last Name, Initials., Author's Last Name, Initials., & Author's Last Name, Initials. (Year). Title of the specific article. Name of the Journal, Volume (issue number of the journal), pages. DOI or URL (prioritize DOI over URL; do not provide both).

Online Book

Author's Last Name, Initials., & Author's Last Name, Initials. (Year). Title of the book. Publisher. DOI or URL.

  • In the 7th edition of APA, it is no longer necessary to include the city in which the book was published. 
  • Before the DOI, include the number of pages consulted if not indicated in the citation, to facilitate the location of the material cited by readers.

Quoting a Quote

If Juárez's work is cited in López's text and Juárez is quoted, search for and provide Juárez's reference with the corresponding DOI or URL. Only if the reference is not available online, cite Juárez within López's work.

General Recommendations

In citations, do not use initials, only use last names and the year.

Example:

  • (Martínez, 2020: 236) is correct.
  • (Martínez E., 2020: 236) is incorrect.

In citations, separate multiple citations with a semicolon, not with commas.

Example:

  • (Martínez, 2020; López, 2021; Pérez, 2023) is correct.
  • (Martínez, 2020, López, 2021, Pérez, 2023) is incorrect.

In references, do not use uppercase letters in titles.

Example:

  • Origin and Evolution of Teeth - is correct.
  • ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF TEETH - is incorrect.